OLD NEWS

12/06/2008 → Toys for Tots Tournament @ The Citadel: The Cougars finished their season victoriously. For the first time since 2003, the cougars were undefeated and were the collegiate champions, losing the tournament to the Charleston Outlaws men's team by default. They beat the college teams by more points than we did. The first match started at 9 AM vs. the Citadel. The cougars played amazing with the pack driving all over the place. Greg Hayes finished them off with two penalty tries. Brendan, and Logan scored pushing the Cougars to a 18-5 victory.
The next match was against Coastal Carolina. The pack was once again unstoppable allowing the ball to make its way outside to Lee for a score. Joey also finished up a huge drive on the goal scoring a try. Cougars emerged on top 12-10. Man of the Match: Zack O'Brien. Dick of the Day: David Fields.

11/22/2008 → Alumni Weekend: Once again the old Cougars put together quite an impressive team. With the ref barely making it to the match, the alumni went up a quick 28 to nil in the first half. The mighty cougars regained their composure in the second, and capitalized on how fat and out of shape all of these boys are that have finished their higher education. C of C won the second half 7 nil, shutting out the alumni. Although we lost 28-7, everyone had a great time. Hope to see you all out next year.

11/8-9/2008 → 2008 Palmetto Tournament: The Cougars shocked the world this weekend, or at least those at Furman University. Their first match was against Clemson, and as usual the pack stole the show. The forwards drove all over Clemson scoring two trys by driving the scrum over the line. On top of that Greg Hayes kicking was perfect allowing the COugars to take a huge lead and win the match 41-18. Sam Cook received his first yellow card bringing the total to 2 on the year for the College. Scores: Statch 2, Ollie 1, Joey 1, Kirk 1, Greg H. 2 penalty kicks.
Next the Cougars matched up against matrix rivals, Coastal Carolina. The Cougar pack matched Coastal's monstrous pack with the backs finally finding their opportunity to shine. At half Coastal was up 17-5, but the Cougars were resilient, and thanks to great kicking again by Greg, the Cougars triumphed 24-22. Scores: Statch 1, Wade 2, Austin 1.
The Cougars advanced for the first time in four years to the championship round of a tournament. Their opponent, the hosts of the tournament, Furman University. The match was brutal with both sides evenly matched. The scores remained 0-0 at half. In the second half Furman broke through the Cougar defense and scored a try, the only of the match. Furman received two yellow cards for dangerous play, constantly throwing fists in the rucks and mauls. Although the Cougars pushed through many times, they never quite made it across the line. Furman took the match 7-0.
On a lighter note, the Cougars received second place, and are pleased with their progress this year. The team is looking great with no injuries heading into alumni weekend, and hope to win the entire Toys for Tots tournament in December. Man of the Weekend: Greg Hayes. Dick of the Weekend: Kirk Wrenn.

10/18/2008 → The Cougars had a poor showing this weekend up at UNC Charlotte. Showing up just minutes before the start of the game with 3 key players deciding that money is more important than rugby. The momentum of the match was slow at the start with the pack once again looking phenomenal. The pack won 27 of 28 scrums! UNCC took advantage of the Cougars poor back play with impressive kicking and relentless ball play to the wings. The Cougars lost an embarrassing 38-0. Dick of the Day: Gary Vegliante, David Bethel, and Ryan Murray.

10/10-12/2008 → Once again it was up to Boone, North Carolina for the 9th annual Rucktoberfest tournament. Ten teams made it up there this year on the men's side and ten for the women's side. The Cougars started off strong vs. GA Tech obtaining their first shut out of the year. We looked unstoppable winning 48-0, with Logan Honeycutt scoring his first try, Statch got a hat trick, Tom Laffay, Greg Fronda, Greg Hayes, and Brendan all scored.
Next the Cougars matched up against NC State. Taking the lead early the Cougars continued on a roll. State countered after halftime with two quick trys going up 17-10. At the end, a quick line out all the way out to the wing, got the ball to Tyler Pittman who drove it in for a try. State held us off though beating the Cougars 17-15. For the final match on Saturday, the Cougars took on Matrix rivals Coastal Carolina. As always it was a forwards match with Coastal emerging on top 17-12. The weekend proved that the Cougars are a whole new team and are ready for a rematch in two weeks. On Sunday the Cougars B-side took on UNC Charlotte. Although the Mean Green scored four trys to our nil, the young Cougars are showing promise for a strong future of rugby at the College of Charleston. Man of the weekend: Mike Bannon, Dick of the Weekend: Brendan McSherry/Greg Fronda. In addition, rookie Austin Coon obtained the first card of the season by lifting an opposing player by his head and slamming him on the ground. Way to embrace the sport of rugby.

10/4/2008 → I am not sure what happened Saturday Night, but the morning was a series of weird events. The ref broke down in Georgia, probably a good thing because we need the money, and Lander showed up with 9 guys. Of course we made the best of the situation donating six players to the team, with the Lander coach doing a great job as ref. The Cougars showed their ability with 11 trys and 1 penalty kick, 5 Zulus on the day, and only giving up 1 try. The Cougars looked better than ever as they head into Fall break at Rucktoberfest. Although there was no B-side, the freshman flooded the field in the second half, continuing to score and holding on defensively. Man of the Match: Mike Bannon, Dick of the Day: Nobody, although it should be Ryan Murray for his great leadership skills and almost missing the match with our jerseys.

9/26/2008 → The Cougars travelled up to Columbia this weekend to battle against the University of South Carolina. Austin Coon and Tyler Pittman collectively dominated defense on the wing resulting in the Cougars first Try by Pittman. The second try was a result of a long drive down the pitch, with Ryan Murray breaking tackles and fighting his way across the line. Overall the Cougars looked better than they have since 2006. Friday night showed a lot of promise for the upcoming season. USC took the match 34-10. For the second week in a row the Cougars played a B-side match, putting points on the board. Tim Shilstone broke across the Gamecock defense earning the first Zulu of the year. Man of the Match: Joey Ingham, Dick of the Day: Wade Berreth.

9/20/2008 → The Cougars started the season off with a match against Appalachian State University at home. ASU put the first points on the board with a penalty kick but the cougars drove back down the field. The pack drove the ball down the field as the first half ran down resulting in a miraculous try by scrum half Kirk Wrenn. The leed was short lived however with ASU countering with a quick try before the end of the half. With a few injuries at the start of the first half, ASU took control of the match scoring two more trys. ASU won 24-7. After the match the Cougars put together their first legitamate B-side for a friendly against ASU. Although it was a bit of a blowout, the young Cougars showed a lot of promise. Man of the Match: Kirk Wrenn, Dick of the Day: Greg Hayes.

8/27/2008 → First day of practice

8/26/2008 → First day of classes and recruitment meeting

8/22/2008 → Move in day for Freshman

8/09/2008 → USA Eagles vs. Clermont Auvergne @ Blackbaud Stadium on Daniel's Island

Summer 2008 → The Cougars are experimenting with the first ever College 7's team hoping to compete in a few tournaments throughout the summer.

04/05/2008 → The C of C Cougars traveled up to Wilmington this weekend to take on the Wilmington Spartans. In perfect rugby weather, rainy and wet, the Cougars dominated Wilmington for most of the match. Wade Berreth and Tyler Pittman scored trys giving the Cougars a 10-5 lead. However, the Spartans scored two trys to finish the match and win 19-10.
The most exciting part of the match, besides the Spartan sandwich made by Ryan Murray and Sam Cook resulting in a Wilmington player being carried off the field, was the return of David "Statch" Bethel, aka Bahama Bad Boy. In his first match back in over a year, David made upwards of three tackles in a row, making lots of noise in the process. Upon leaving the game, one Wilmington player commented, "Who is that guy with all those tattoos, and is he on drugs?"
Thank you everyone for another great season. Especially Tim Walsh and Todd Burnaford who will be departing. See you all next year.
Man of the match: Dan Markevich
Dick of the Day: Wade Berreth

02/02/2008 → The Cougars took on the Charleston Outlaws B-side today and again the score did not reflect C of C. The cougars lost 50-5, with Greg Hayes scoring his first try. The cougars put up a hard defense but could not keep up with the Outlaws great speed.

01/20/2008 → odd Burnaford, Joey Ingham, Brendan McSherry, and Sam Cook represented the Cougars as teams from all over the Palmetto Union joined together for an All-Star game with the East Pennsylvania All-Stars. The match was loads of fun even though the Palmetto union lost by at least fifty.

01/19/2008 → The Cougars lost a heart breaker to the Furman knights on Saturday. The conditions were terrible with constant rain and the temperature in the fifties. The pack played great producing a try, and again Ryan Murray scored, this time at fullback.
Man of the match: Cullen Lea
Dick of the Day: Rob James

We will meet at the YWCA parking lot at 10:00 AM to carpool to the field. Warmups at 11. The game starts at Noon.

01/09/2008 → We will have practice as soon as we get back to school on Wed and Thur at regular times. Also, there will be a mandatory meeting at Todd's house on Sunday the 13th at 9 PM, officers need to be there at 8 PM. Don't be late!

12/01/2007 → Toys For Tots Tournament at the Citadel: The C of C Men's RFC played two matches this weekend. The first, against the Outlaws, was the best fight the cougars have put up to the Charleston Men's team in a while. The final score of 36-0 does not reflect the efforts put forth. The second game however, was a different story. The cougars put up a poor performance against arch rivals, the Citadel, losing 60-12. The game was scheduled on short notice due to their opponent not appearing at the tournament. The match was sluggish, and the tackling was poor. The only highlights involved the trys by Joey Ingham, after a long push by the pack, Tyler Pittman's great run, and Greg Hayes' extra point from the sideline that bounced off the crossbar through the uprights.
Thanks to everyone for a great season and we will see you all out in the spring.
Dicks of the Day: Everyone

11/17/2007 → C of C vs. UNC Charlotte at Home: UNCC started off with a quick try, but the one-man show known as Ryan Murray tied it up with a long run breaking multiple tackles. UNCC answered with another try but failed to complete either of their extra points. C of C defense stepped up and shut out UNCC for the rest of the half. The half ended with a score by pat, and another long run by Ryan Murray. Greg completed both extra points to make the half score 19-10. UNCC started off the second half strong with two scores and one extra point to take the lead 19-22. C of C answered with a long drive but lost the ball on the one-meter line. A failed ruck however by UNCC left the ball wide open and Ryan Murray picked the ball and scored again. At this point the game got a little out of hand with one red card issued to UNCC. The classy C of C team stayed cool, and Tim Walsh ran a long try to seal the game 31-22. In the last few minutes, two more red cards were issued to UNCC for high tackles and punching. C of C placed another notch in their belt moving their record with UNCC this year to 2 and 1, and their overall record to 8 wins, 6 losses.
Man of the Match: Ryan Murray
Dicks of the Day: Todd Burnaford, Ryan Murray

11/03/2007 → The cougars took on the old boys at James Island this weekend. The match started off weak with the old boys scoring four consecutive tries. After the half though, the Cougars came back, first with a penalty try, and then two more tries with monstrous pushes from the pack. Todd Burnaford and Tyler Pittman scored bringing the Cougars close to the old boys. It was not enough, and the old boys were victorious 35-17. Next year the old boys should be sure to bring their diplomas because only the ringers from the DC Irish could score on the Cougars.
Man of the Match: Greg Hayes
Dick of the Day: Sean Kavanough